1 DaruAnak - The Origin

Balogo - is a place full of wonders. In the sea of Balogo lies a great island named Daruanak. Daruanak was a tall and large rock with its own vegetation and animals which is mostly cats and birds. It became one of the tourist destination and is full of people during summer because of its crystal clear waters and reefs full of beautiful marine life.

Many do not know the origin of this rock island, but there is one myth on how the island came to be.

Once upon a time in the land of Balogo there was a boy named Daru. He was a naughty and energetic boy. And then one day he ask his mother that he will swim in the beach and his mother said yes you can swim but you must be back before the sun sets. He immediately rush outside without his slippers off and he saw the beautiful sea-shore, the sea was so calm and blue, the skies was dark as it was angry and will pour down its rain soon, then he jumped and swam happily in the sea. He was enticed by the beautiful sea that he swam further and further by the beach and diving in its bottom to see the colorful fishes and corals. His mother have notice that Daru was not yet home and the sun was setting down. After a moment there was a loud sound and suddenly an earthquake and the rain pour heavily. His mother runs outside and shouted, "Daru where are you?! It's time to go home!". She looked for her child in the beach and he was not there, she looked for him in the mountains and he was not there. She did worry so much that she cannot find him, She looked for him all through the night. And when the morning came, she walked in the beach looking for him, a lonely, crying, worrying mother, who do not know what to do when he lost his son, noticed that in the middle of the sea there was a large rock looking like her child's face. She then concluded that his naughty child was transformed into a rock because he didn't obey his parents. She called the rock 'Daru-Anak' which means 'Daru my Son'.

This myth made the kids in Balogo obedient to their parents, since kids didn't want to be a rock like Daru but there was more to the story other than this myth in which many do not know what is the purpose of the rock island in the middle of the sea and how it got there.

What happened in the myth were partly true. Yes, an asteroid fell from the dark skies exactly where he is and on that day many residents of Balogo during that time didn't survive because of the wave and earthquake it created. It created a large crater which is hidden under the sea. 500 years passed the land of Balogo was once again populated by many families they are enticed by the majestic view of the large asteroid and the people called it Daruanak and have created the myth for it.

Daruanak protects the land of Balogo during typhoons it also became the hiding place of the ships during strong winds and waves. It became a great landmark and was visited by the tourist every year but they do not know what is hidden in this rock.

In this year 2019, Daruanak is a beautiful place, it has clear sea waters where you can see from the surface the different kinds of coral fishes, colorful sea-snakes, starfish, and sometimes dolphins. This became a beautiful island, you can compare it to a 20-story tall building with a wide surface. Trees and plants have grown in the island it doesn't have sand though but you'll walk through beautiful coral particles and pebbles. It has a large tree in which under it the locals have created a safe house for fishermen and tourists during rainy season. In the back of it is a great reef where large fishes leaves. Many of the locals catches fish there using the arrow-fishing method. The back of the island is pure stone, in which there are small pools and was filled with water during the rainy season. The locals also built a stairway to guide the people onto the top of the island. Once you reached the top of the island, it was full of tall grasses and small trees and from the top you can clearly see the beauty of Balogo and the sea beside it. Daruanak is always described as a majestic island that protects the village always.

I know you'll ask, how did I know the origin of the island? When there are no any written documentaries about this nor any studies. I'll say you'll understand it while you are reading this.

I'm not born in Balogo we are also one of the families that happened to stay in that village. I grew there and most of my friends are in there. We grew in the shadow of protection of Daruanak. Many attempted to destroy the island by burning it. We don't know the reason, but some says that it contains many rare-minerals inside, but it was not proven. When we were kids, before sun-down, we saw Daruanak burning. My friend, Jeth, shouted, 'Daruanak is burning! Daruanak is burning!'. We were too sad on that day that the Green Island was engulfed in larged flames and no one can stop it. After the fire, the Island became black as if you will be afraid to go there, it showed the color of a burned rock and you can smell it like sulfur.

Today I am 26 years old and is already working in Manila while my friends are also working locally and abroad and we are to far to each other. On August 25, 2019, I went back to Balogo and during my stay I did go to the Daruanak Island by rowing a boat. When I get there I climbed up to the top of the island to see the wonderful view of my village. I sat down in a rock and thanked the Creator of the beautiful world He has given to us. Suddenly, there was a tremor, I held the small tree beside me so that I will not fell to the bottom or else death will say 'Hi' to me. During the tremor, I've remembered that when I was a kid, when me and my parents are in the island where it is full of tourist, a guy suddenly fall from the top of the island. I've heard that he is drunk and the tree that he was holding on could not hold his weight and from the top he fall down straight to a rock in the bottom, it was full of blood, his head was cracked, but he was still breathing. His friends carry him to a boat, but before they can put him into the boat he fell in the sea water, thinking of it makes me sad for what an unlucky day for him. And as an addition to his unluckiness, their boat was so slow, it is a boat with only one 'Katig' (Katig - is a part of the boat in the Philippines where it balances the boat so it will not sink. It is constructed with long-bamboo and wood.). I'm thinking what if it happened to me, I'm now in the middle of the tremor in the top of the island and will fell into a rock, there are no other person in the island other than me so no one will rescue me when I fall. I am surprised and nervous when suddenly the rock beside open up and created a dark hole. I wish I didn't come here, if I fall into this hole no one will ever find me and it will be an easy death. Then suddenly, I heard a branch breaking, when I looked in the branch I was holding it did break and I was falling to my doom in that hole. Did you know when the character is falling in the movies? It is like somewhat in a slow-motion phase where the character is waving his hands and slowly falling looking in the place where he fell. Don't believe in it! It's not true I fell so fast, although I was expecting it in a slow-mo version, that my body bump into the rock walls and suddenly knocking my head and it became all so dark.

When I opened my eyes I saw the hole where I fell and the light from it is shining brightly within my eyes. I sat down and I felt my ribs was broken due to the fall. I didn't know how will I climb up and my legs are still numb. My head hurts so much like someone hit me with a hammer. I lied down again and began thinking of how I will escape this dark place. A chilling wind came passed me, it appears that maybe there is a way out from here where the wind came from. I stand and follow this cold wind, it leads to a small and tight tunnel. I tried to fit in my body and follow it where I did saw a light in the end. When I came out of the tunnel I thought that I was outside the cave because of the light what I saw is a beautiful cavern and I'm amazed that it was like a paradise. It is hard to describe but I'll do my best to tell it to you. What gives it light is an unfamiliar type of luminous plants and grass, it's a blend of white and blue color and some of the plants were red and orange. Also there are birds and bats in the cavern, the bats are colored white-spotted and the birds are luminous blue, they're like lights flying around. The place was so magical, you can see the color of the water as blue as if there were plankton lighting them. In the water you can see also fishes but they are not the kind of fish you'll see everyday they are so colorful and bright. I am confused of what made them this but what confused me more is when I saw a clowder in the cavern. They are in a top of the rock looking at me as if they are observing my every move. You can see their wild eyes glimmering and observing until they all stand and run like they were about to pounce me. I step back a little, but it amazes me when I saw their tails. The end of their tails are shining, like the luminous birds, I think that gave them light in the dark cavern. I want to run, but I also want to hold them. When I am in their reach, they didn't pounce me instead they rub their body in my feet. I sat down and hold them gently, they are seemingly kind to a person. I told the cats, 'Maybe you know how will I get out here.' although I know they cannot understand me. Unexpectedly, the cats are trying to guide me. While following them I am amazed of their behavior it was like they know that you were feeling. I walked through the rocks and grass then skip a clear and small creek, climbed-up to a tall rock and saw a beautiful but not so tall waterfalls. I realized that's where the water came from and we came through the water fall and it leads to a stair-like rocks and a curtain of luminous vines and through the vines there is a small tree as tall as a well-grown man, surrounded by a crystal water in which the water falls came from. In those waters there where stones, and the each one of the cats stood to it like they were guarding the tree. I told them, 'I thought you'll lead me to an exit.' , then one the cats came to me and tied its tail around my ankle like it want me to follow him. Then it led me to the tree and in that tree I saw a beautifully colored stone embedded in it and when I touched the stone it was turned to liquid and slowly entered the pores of my fingers like it was Venom in Marvel but it did not turn me to a black symbiote. When it entered my body I saw flashes of where it came from, and I saw how did it fell in my village a hundred years ago and how did it create the paradise inside Daruanak. It was like I was on a dream and when I woke up, I found myself floating in the air. I thought it was my spirit and I was dead and already leaving my body, but when I am looking below, I cannot find my body and unexpectedly bump my head in the ceiling of the cavern. I noticed that I cannot feel the pain when I fall earlier and the bruises in my body was gone. And lately I realized that I am really flying!

When you think that flying is easy, I'll tell you no it is not. I fell again from the cave ceiling, and from there I didn't know how I will fly again. The cats led me out of the cavern and now I'm back where I fell from before. The dark, gloomy place where I almost died. Then the cats came back to the place where they came from and left me alone like they were trusting me that I'll fly my way out or jump high to escape this cavern. I tried to jump and shouted, 'Fly!' but nothing happened. I tried it twenty times even saying 'Superman!' and 'Darna!'. I said to myself what a joke maybe what happened was just a dream but my bruises was gone, so it was real. I try to climb up but the rocks are so slippery. I sat down and closed my eyes and think about what happened and how I did fly. Startlingly, a rock thwack in my head, I have shouted 'Ouch!' and rub my head hardly, and said 'You're so unlucky Pj, first you fell in a rock then a rock fell to you.' I opened my eyes and was surprised that I found myself again in the ceiling of the cave. I hold onto the rock near me and crawl myself to the hole where I fell. I feel like the gravity is pushing me up, it was like the up is the down and the down is the up and my head hurts thinking of that. When I felt that I'll fall down again, I quickly grabbed the ledge and pull my way up. At last, I'm out! It was near evening then, I felt that it was like a week inside that hole. I go down from the island and row my boat away as fast as I can, like I was escaping something. All that happens there was weird to me and I can't explain why my body feels so great and light, like a new energy is circling in my body.

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